Livelihood Security: Climate change, conflict and migration in - UNEP

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focus on the most vulnerable groups, such as
pastoralist societies, and build upon existing
policies, such as the African Union’s policy
framework for pastoralism in Africa.
International organizations, including UNEP,
IOM, OCHA and UNU, should strengthen their
cooperation with these regional structures,
for example through joint programmes and
projects for conflict prevention and disaster
management related to environmental
factors and the increasing displacement of
communities due to environmental change.
National laws and policies on natural
resources and environmental issues should
be harmonized across the region, in order
to avoid inconsistencies or discrepancies
between neighbouring countries that could
lead to increased pressure on natural
resources in areas with weaker legislation.
The UN system should additionally gather lessons
learned on best practices in adaptation
policy in order to better support transboundary
cooperation and regional approaches.
It should also assist in capacity-building for
national and regional governance, facilitating
linkages between different governance
levels, and the harmonization of national laws
and policies to address the interlinked issues
covered in this report.
5) Strengthen preventive action, resource rights
and dispute resolution: Early action on the environmental
drivers of crises can help prevent and
defuse both imminent issues and broader instability.
Traditional conflict mediation practices
should also be adapted to the new realities on
the ground resulting from changes taking place
in the climate and natural environment.
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Dispute resolution should be promoted by
building local, national and international
capacity to conduct mediation between
conflicting parties where tensions are linked
to natural resources. The deployment of
“stand-by teams” of environmental experts
as part of conflict prevention efforts, for
example, is one option.
Clarifying resource rights, land tenure and
access to justice is a prerequisite for effective
Livelihood Security: Climate Change, Migration and Conflict in the Sahel
national and local-level governance. When
doing so, national or regional authorities
need to consider potential conflicts between
national and local/traditional governance
structures and, where possible, build on
existing and accepted dispute resolution
mechanisms.
6) Prioritize systematic data collection and early
warning systems: One of the considerable challenges
faced in this study was the significant lack
of data on climate indicators, migration and
local-level conflict in the region. These issues
have already been highlighted in a number
of publications on the Sahel, most recently by
the OECD. 231 The collection of this data should
preferably be mandated under one specific
regional organization, building on existing structures
within CILSS (such as INSAH and AGRHYMET)
or ECOWAS, for example, and supported by the
international community. The UN system can also
support improved data collection by providing
scientific tools, global transboundary databases
and long-term funding. Specific recommendations
to address these gaps include:
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Systematic collection of data of rainfall, temperature
and the occurrence and severity of
droughts and floods should be established
and improved throughout the region, notably
through weather stations set up to track these
indicators within the various microclimates.
Improved climate-related data for the
region should be integrated with the work of
national meteorological institutions and the
recently launched Climate for Development
in Africa Programme (ClimDev-Africa), 232 in
cooperation with the World Meteorological
Organization (WMO).
Indicators should be identified and
mechanisms established to systematically
collect data on small-scale and localized
conflicts in the region, capturing the various
causes and triggers, including the availability
of fodder and the movements of people and
their animals. When conflicts are identified as
being related to natural resources, continued
monitoring and appropriate mitigation
activities should be undertaken. Such
activities can include mediation activities,
improved natural resources management,
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